Since 1992-92, the Ottawa Senators have been in the NHL. Throughout franchise history, the Senators have had 14 different head coaches coach at least one game behind the bench.
Arguably the best two in franchise history are Jacques Martin and Bryan Murray. Martin has the most wins in Senators history as a head coach. Murray was the coach for the Senators when they made the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals, and is part of the Senators Ring of Honour.
Different coaches have different styles and more to their coaching. However, there is one Senators coach that has something unique in Senators history, but his tenure in Ottawa was a memorable one.
Only one Senators head coach in franchise history wasn't born in Canada, and that head coach went on to win a Jack Adams
Of the 14 head coaches in Senators history, 13 of them were born in Canada. There is only one who wasn't born in Canada, and that is Paul MacLean.
Some might not know, but MacLean was born in France. MacLean coached the Senators from 2011-2014. During his tenure as head coach, the Senators had some success.
In his first season as head coach, the Senators made the 2012 playoffs after missing out in 2011. MacLean's Senators nearly pulled off the eighth seed upset against the New York Rangers in the 2012 playoffs when the team fell in the first round in seven games.
In 2013, MacLean and the Senators made the playoffs again. This time as a seventh seed and were matched up against the rival Montreal Canadiens. Unlike 2012, the Senators pulled off the first round upset against the Canadiens by taking them down in five games. The Senators would fall to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round in five games.
MacLean would go on to win the 2013 Jack Adams Trophy as the NHL's best coach. Even with winning the Jack Adams, MacLean had two other memorable moments during 2013.
One was when a lookalike of MacLean appeared in a January 2013 game. Known for his mustache, a fan behind the Senators bench was sitting front row with an identical mustache and wearing a suit.
The other came when then Canadiens forward Brandon Prust called MacLean a "bug-eyed fat walrus" after then Senators forward Erik Gryba was hit on a play by Lars Eller during the 2013 playoffs. Irony today is Eller is now a member of the Senators organization.
Unfortunately for MacLean and the Senators, the team failed to make the 2014 playoffs. Then, midway through December in the 2014-15 season, MacLean was fired when the Senators had an 11-11-5 record.
Even with being fired, MacLean had a tenure as head coach that is still remembered. Erik Karlsson's elite play first took off when MacLean was head coach of the Senators.